Biblical Oddities #37 -- Have You Met Your Match? Quiz

Answer: Terah

According to Scripture, Terah was the father of both Abraham and Sarah, who married and became the parents of Isaac.

At the time of marriage they were known as Abram and Sari but later God changed their names.

Although Terah was the father of the couple, Scripture indicates Abraham and Sarah had different mothers.

In Genesis 20:12, Abraham is quoted as saying Sarah "is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother."

To be fair, Genesis 11:27-29 states Sarah was the daughter of Haran, who was Abraham's brother. If this is the case, Terah would be Sarah's grandfather.

In other words, Abraham would have married his niece rather than his half sister.

Answer: Miriam

Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron, is the first woman in the Bible who is identified as a prophetess, as per Exodus 15:20.

Miriam assisted her two brothers in leading the Israelites out of Egypt on their forty-year long journey to Canaan, the Promised Land.

Some other women in the Bible referred to as a prophetess include Deborah, Huldah and Anna.

Answer: Joshua

Joshua is the correct answer. Joshua 1:1 tells of the Israelites getting a new leader after the death of Moses.

After a forty-year-long expedition, Joshua had the honor of leading the Israelites into Canaan, also known as the Promised Land.

Numbers 13:1 identifies Joshua as one of the twelve spies commissioned by Moses to explore the land of Canaan. According to Scripture, only two of the twelve spies returned with an optimistic report.

The two spies who filed optimistic reports were Joshua and Caleb.

Answer: Menahem

Dial 'M' for Menahem and also for murder and mayhem.

He was a cruel and sadistic king of Israel who would do anything to keep control of the throne -- even if it meant ripping open pregnant women.

According to Scripture, the people of Tiphsah were opposed to his regime and Menahem responded with an iron fist. He ordered the city be destroyed, with 2 Kings 15:16 stating, "all the women there who were with child he ripped open."

And people say the Bible is boring!

Answer: Phillip

According to Acts 21:8, Philip was an evangelist. In addition to this, he was a Grecian Jew and one of seven men chosen to distribute food to needy widows, as per Acts 6:5.

While Scripture doesn't necessarily label Timothy as an evangelist, Paul certainly urges him to serve as one. In 2 Timothy 4:5 in the NKJV, Paul tells Timothy to "be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry."

Answer: Zacchaeus

Zacchaeus was the diminutive tax collector of Jericho who, according to Scripture, climbed up a sycamore tree to get a better look at Jesus as he was passing through town.

After Jesus spotted him in the tree, Christ astounded Zacchaeus by saying he would be staying at his house that day.

Luke 19:5 quotes Jesus in the NKJV as stating: "Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house."

Scripture goes on to state "...he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully."

Answer: John the Baptist

John the Baptist denounced the religious leaders of the day -- the Pharisees and the Sadducees -- calling them a brood of vipers. See Matthew 3:7 for details.

John the Baptist was a forerunner of Jesus Christ of whom he said he was not even worthy of untying His sandals, as per John 1:27.

To be fair, Jesus also used the term brood of vipers when describing the Pharisees and Sadducees, as per Matthew 12:34.

Answer: Demas

In 2 Timothy 4:10, Paul writes Demas had "forsaken" him and went to Thessalonica "having loved this present world."

Demas is mentioned in Colossians 4:14 and in Philemon 1:24 as a worker in the early church.

However, after he forsook Paul no further details are given about Demas.

Paul was in prison when he wrote 2 Timothy.

Answer: Timothy

Timothy is the only worker in the early church to have the names of his mother and grandmother listed. According to 2 Timothy 1:5, his mother was Eunice and his grandmother was Lois.

They were both Jewish women who had become Christians.

However, no names are given for Timothy's father and grandfather.

Answer: Anna

Anna is the only person in the New Testament whose name is a palindrome. In other words, the name is spelled the same backwards as it is forward.

Anna was an elderly prophetess who is mentioned in Luke 2:36. According to the verse, she was the daughter of Phanuel.

Scripture goes on to state she felt great joy upon seeing the baby Jesus and "spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem."

To be fair, the name Abba appears in the New Testament and it is also a palindrome. However, the name applies to our heavenly Father and not to an individual.

There are a number of names in the Old Testament which are palindromes. They include Eve, Ada, Nun, Hannah, Asa, Ara, Gog and Ono.